Orange County NC Website
1 <br />2 <br />3 <br />4 <br />5 <br />6 <br />7 <br />8 <br />9 <br />10 <br />11 <br />12 <br />13 <br />14 <br />15 <br />16 <br />17 <br />18 <br />19 <br />20 <br />21 <br />22 <br />23 <br />24 <br />25 <br />26 <br />27 <br />28 <br />29 <br />30 <br />31 <br />32 <br />33 <br />34 <br />35 <br />36 <br />37 <br />38 <br />39 <br />40 <br />41 <br />42 <br />43 <br />44 <br />45 <br />46 <br />47 <br />48 <br />49 <br />27 <br />• What to do when privacy issues are encountered. The policy envisions a balancing test <br />that will be employed to weigh the privacy interests of an individual against the <br />legitimate law enforcement interests. If the privacy interests outweigh the law <br />enforcement ones, the decision would weigh in favor of turning off the recording device. <br />• The policy indicates that officers will never be asked to jeopardize their safety by turning <br />on the camera, and will be guided by a standard of reasonableness. <br />• The policy addresses when turning off the device is appropriate, which is usually when <br />the officer's direct participation in an incident is completed, if the set out criteria no <br />longer fits, significant periods of inactivity, etc. <br />• The State's retention schedule for Sheriff's offices, which Orange County has adopted, <br />sets the floor for the different timelines for how long things should be retained. The <br />State sets it at 30 days, and Orange County's policy requires 180 days, at the minimum. <br />Any misdemeanor would require a 3 -year retention period, and any felony would require <br />a 20 -year retention period. <br />Commissioner Price said in the purpose and scope section, it refers to "portable and <br />mobile," and asked if Jennifer Galassi could differentiate between the two. <br />Jennifer Galassi said an officer using a personal device is still subject to this policy. <br />Commissioner Price referred to the second paragraph, and said it does not apply to <br />mobile audio -video recordings. <br />Jennifer Galassi said it reads "mobile, audio, or video recordings, interviews or <br />interrogations..." and this is modifying what comes after it. She said it is taking out of this policy <br />interviews, interrogations, recordings that are made within the Sheriff's office, or taken from an <br />undercover officer, wire taps, or eavesdropping. <br />Commissioner Price said some of the language reads, "should" instead of "shall," and <br />asked if there is specific reasoning behind this. She read the following as an example: "when <br />using a portable recorder, the assigned member should record his /her name." She asked if <br />there is a reason the officer is not required to record his /her name. <br />Jennifer Galassi said that is envisioning what it then goes on to discuss. She said she <br />does not know how their particular system will work, and it is envisioned that each unit is going <br />to be assigned to one particular officer, and so the system will be set to an individual, and thus <br />recording a name will be unnecessary. <br />Sheriff Blackwood said the devices will be issued, and the computer index will have the <br />officer's name on it, and it will be theirs to keep with them all the time. <br />Jennifer Galassi said they have envisioned having additional devices in the event there <br />is a malfunction with one. She said in this scenario, the officer will have to manually assign <br />themselves to the device. <br />Commissioner Marcoplos said it sounds like a lot will be learned with experience, and <br />asked if there are any process or evaluation techniques in mind. <br />Jennifer Galassi said it will be a learning curve as things occur. She said issues can be <br />anticipated, but as soon as the officers have the devices, further input and feedback will be <br />gathered. <br />Chair Dorosin said last time this topic was discussed, Sheriff Blackwood said the policy <br />would say that if someone wanted to see a video, they would be permitted to do so; but he said <br />he does not see that allowance in policy 803. <br />Sheriff Blackwood said it is in the general statute, and if it is not in the policy, it will be <br />added. <br />Chair Dorosin said the General State Statute says a video "may" be disclosed, and he <br />understood that Orange County will make the wording that a video "will" be disclosed to a <br />